This weekend TNT HD is showing the Lord of the Rings Trilogy in high def.

*sproing*

Let's just say this excites me greatly. I'm watching Fellowship as I write this. 1080i high definition, Dolby Digital Surround Sound, and widescreen (though apparently slightly zoomed as it bears no bars on top or bottom, even though I'm sure the footage was not shot in 16:9).

Needless to say it looks awesome, though TNT has commercials which is highly annoying. I don't know the running time, but it's gotta be like 4 hours with all the commercial breaks. *sigh*

I recently acquired the HD-DVD drive for the Xbox 360, so I eagerly await the release of LoTR on HD-DVD. I don't know when that might be, but it can't be soon enough.

Incidentally, if you were wondering what high definition gives you in terms of picture quality, check out this cool comparison of the Fellowship of the Ring in HD vs DVD. Mouse over the screenshots to see the difference. Screenshots don't compare to seeing it on a nice, bright, large-screen television, but it at least shows how the extra resolution of high definition enhances the sharpness of the image.